What a Smooth Cat
by LunarLacrimosa
Summary: After Mission City, Barricade is left on his own and goes into stasis lock. Waking up he realizes that a family of cats has moved in, and he grows attached to them. When the mother dies he's forced to make a tough decision if he wants the kittens to live
1. The beginning

**AN: An idea I had because of a family of cat's moving in under my porch. For some reason this sprang up, and I like Miles knowing about the Cybertronians, and what better way then through our favorite police 'con?**

**Might continue based on reviews. If you like this idea so far please say so, I already have an ongoing story and I'm not sure if I want two.**

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><p>Barricade, fearsome and cunning Decepticon warrior, was in an extremely rare situation, for him, anyway. He had absolutely no idea what to do, and usually he at least had straws to grasp at that weren't that bad. Now he had nothing that couldn't end unpleasantly for him.<p>

Thinking about it, as he had more time then he wanted to think, he was torn between two mechs that he could blame this on. The first was the Autobot Scout, Bumblebee, who had kicked his aft and made him skip out on Mission City to lick his wounds. Then there was Starscream, who, after the defeat of Megatron and the Decepticons in Mission City, had become the new leader of the Decepticons. Barricade had refused to accept him as such, and Starscream took advantage of his weakened state to thoroughly kick his aft even more than it already had been. Then the Seeker had taken Barricade's weapons, called him a traitor, and threatened that if the Autobots had not offlined the 'con before he returned, then he would do it himself.

So, Barricade had been left severely damaged, drifting off into stasis lock so his systems could try to repair themselves. During that time a female cat had found him, found a way to get inside of him from a wound Starscream had given him, and decided that he would make a wonderful nest.

Imagine his surprise when he finally woke up from stasis, feeling three fuzzy organics in his back seat.

To make it worse, all he could do was remain where he was, and think. He didn't dare access the internet, figuring if Soundwave was around and he decided to listen to Starscream he might be keeping a lookout for Barricade's signal. This gave him plenty of free time, and he spent a lot of it thinking, and some of it actually paying attention to the organics that called him home.

They were endearing and cute in their own simplistic way, though Barricade had only thought that exactly once before getting rid of those notions all together. Without meaning to, the Decepticon felt himself getting attached, even if he couldn't interact with the organic creatures. Both of the kittens were varying shades of orange, with some white. The one who was braver, more adventurous, and curious, he took to thinking of as Brightspark, and he was easily told from his brother by having only one white paw. His brother he had dubbed Softspark, this kitten usually letting Brightspark take the lead and hiding behind his brother or mother when there was something new or scary around. The mother he had started to call Swiftspark, having seen her hunt nearby and chase a large dog away all on her own. He could only assume she didn't belong to anybody, as she had no collar or tags, but he wasn't sure where her mate was.

He couldn't explain how he got attached to them, but he did. It was almost embarrassing, a fearsome killer becoming attached to two tiny _kittens_ and their femme creator. It's not like they could respond to him intelligently, but if he talked he thought it was almost like they listened, and he at least knew they knew their names, somehow. Either that or it just worked out the right way. They reacted to his touch as if they were pleased, purring most times. He half wondered if they could be trained, like a dog, and set about preparing to do that just a little bit.

Admittedly, their bathroom tendencies were disgusting, and he took to cleaning himself out thoroughly dairly while Brightspark and Softspark explored.

Slowly he got them used to him doing things. He talked through his radio, played songs, moved the seats, his seatbelts, opened his doors, drove a bit forward and back. And then he finally transformed, almost so slow it was painful so he could avoid hurting any of them. Through it all they returned, and he took just a small bit of enjoyment from stretching out on the ground in bipedal form, Softspark and Brightspark laying over his spark chamber and purring, while Swiftspark was away, doing whatever it was that she did when she left her kittens and Barricade behind.

And then one day Swiftspark didn't return. Barricade waited, keeping Brightspark and Softspark safe inside of his alt mode when she missed her regular appearance to check on the kittens. After a few hours he went to look for her, scanners searching for her energy signature, and finally finding her in the middle of the road with a bird laying nearby. She had been run over, though after catching the prey or in an attempt to, he couldn't tell. He knew this was bad, that Softspark and Brightspark still relied on her for milk. They hadn't been weaned yet, and he had no idea what he could do to feed them even if he had been able to.

Being as they were just tiny kittens, he had panicked when he realized he couldn't access the internet without the chance of Starscream finding him. Without the internet's knowledge the kittens could die, but with it, if Starscream found him through it, they could still die, and it would be all his fault. He thought about it for hours, and during that time the kittens had began to show their distress. They were hungy, and they missed their mother. Even the calming and soothing voice of Barricade they had become adjusted to, though no one outside of them and Frenzy had heard it, didn't help them all that much.

Finally, in a desperate moment of thinking, he remembered the address of where Ladiesman217, aka Samual James Witwicky, lived. He knew that the Autobot Scout would most likely be there, but he decided to risk it. If nothing else, Barricade could hopefully get a few words in before Bumblebee tried to offline him permanently. Autobots had always been ridiculously soft hearted, and he figured if the scout scanned him and found he wasn't lying, it would give him good enough reason to pause. Perhaps he could at least ask the insect to make sure the two kittens were well taken care of, even if Barricade couldn't remain around them.

He went just as the sun was beginning to set, though he had no idea what day it was, or what month. He could only guess it was fall. He circled the block a few times, masking his signal, and noting how Bumblebee sat in the Witwicky driveway, playing the non-sentient car. His third time around he saw Sam come out with another teenage boy, one Barricade didn't know about, and didn't care about. Fourth time around showed this new boy waving his arms around in an excited manner, then kicking the Autobot's tire. Sam looked torn between anger and trying not to look angry, which led Barricade to assume that the second organic had no idea Bumblebee was alive. That interested the 'con.

He was lucky the police made it an often occurence to circle the neighborhoods of Tranquility every now and then, or Bumblebee surely would have thought something was up. His seventh time around he noticed that Sam was alone now, and was talking to Bumblebee, rubbing a hand on his hood. Barricade assumed he was apologizing, and drove on. By this time it was dark, and he just barely noticed the figure of the organic who had been with Sam as he went to turn the corner. Thinking quickly Barricade turned on his siren, activated a hologram, and had it run directly in front of Miles, and continue going until it was out of sight. He activated a hologram inside his alt form, and pulled over, stepping out and going to the teen.

"Which way did he go?" Barricade growled, trying to play the cop after the bad guy.

Miles gaped at him, taking in the cop's appearance. Surprisingly pale and skinny, but tall, with black hair. The teen, not usually thinking himself as short, had to look up to look the cop in the face. When he opened his mouth to talk it looked as if his canine teeth were a lot more pointy then they should be, and the teen swore the cop's eyes were as red as blood. The voice was a deep baritone, and slightly ruff, as if it was trying to decide whether it wanted to actually speak or not. Altogether the teen got the impression that this man could do some serious damage, and dancing on the thin line of his bad side and his good side would be an extremely bad idea. His first thought was somehow he had ran into an actual vampire, before chalking that up to the fact that it was October and nearing Halloween, and that he was just being paranoid. He figured the red eyes could be colored contacts, worn to help scare his pre-future prisoners.

"That way, dude. Good luck, he was runnin' like a bat from hell was after him." Miles replied, pointing in the direction of the person he had saw running go in.

"Can you do me a favor son?" Barricade asked, waiting until the teen nodded slowly. "I can't take my vehicle, he's going through the yards. I got some precious cargo in there, and I'll leave it running if it has someone watching over it. Can you do that for me?"

Miles nodded again, and before he could blink Barricade was already a few feet away from him and running the way the other person had went. The teen watched the cop go, surprised as he leaped over a chain link fence as if it was some plain hurdle. He whistled to himself, heading to the saleen police cruiser, and getting in. He left the door opened, almost a bit nervous to close it, as if someone might thinking he was stealing the cop car. He sat awkwardly, torn between thinking this was either going to be an awesome night, or a let down, when he heard the soft mewing coming from the back seat.

Surprised, he turned and peered into it, finding two tiny orange tabby kittens. He could only assume that's what the cop had meant by precious cargo, and couldn't keep the grin off his face. He cooed, "Aw, who thought creepy vampire cop would have two little cuties like you hidden away? Here I was thinking he looked like such a hardass. Wonder what your names are?"

He shifted, knees on the front seat and body entirely in the cruiser as he leaned over the front seat, reaching for the back. Brightspark met his touch happily, purring, but Softspark was a bit more cautious. He petted Brightspark, gently scratching between the kitten's ears, when the door he had left open slammed shut, causing Miles to jerk in surprise and hit his head off the ceiling as he looked around wildly. There was nothing, and he sighed. His mind supplied him with the idea that a strong gust of wind had crept up, and the door had slammed shut due to that.

Grinning once more, he reached in the back, picking up first Brightspark, then Softspark, and bringing the two kittens into the front seat with himself. He leaned his back against the door, stretching out in the front seat, as he let the kittens sniff and climb all over him. When he heard a soft clicking sound that signalled the doors locking, he sat up, thinking he had accidentally pressed a door lock button, and not wanting a repeat in case the cop came back and yelled at him over touching things he shouldn't in a police officer's car.

He watched the two kittens silently for a moment, before wiggling his fingers enticingly in front of one of their face's, and smiled when both of them jumped at the chance to play, doing their best to attack his fingers.

"Their names are Brightspark, he's the one with only one white paw, and Softspark. Brothers." The cop's deep baritone rang out, causing Miles to jump once more, and look around with wide eyes. He didn't see the cop anywhere, and his eyes drifted to the radio. Cops had those walkie talkies, and he figured that the cop was using that to talk to him.

"Woah, that's cool. Talkin' to me from far away." Miles laughed, shifting so he was sitting normally in the driver's seat, holding the two kittens. His hand rested slightly on the gear shift. "Catch the man you wanted?"

He jerked when the gear shift moved of it's own accord, and the engine followed up by giving a loud rev. The entire cruiser started shooting down the road at a fast pace, the wheel moving on it's own. Miles stared wide eyed, unsure of what to do, and about to try to contact the officer, when out of the corner of his eye he suddenly saw the cop materialize, and the teen whipped his head around.

Barricade leaned in close to Miles, looking directly into the teen's frightened eyes as he snarled. "Yes, he's right here."

Miles screamed.

* * *

><p>"C-cat food?" The teen's voice rang with disbelief.<p>

"Yes, go buy some. Now." Barricade snarled in reply.

Miles silently weighed his options inside of his head, before scrambling out of the car and running inside the petstore with Softspark in his arms.

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><p>"I got the goods."<p>

Silence.

"So... what are you? You're obviously not human. I'd love to know what I was kidnapped by."

A scoff. "You were not kidnapped, fleshling."

"Forcing me to go somewhere against my will is kidnapping."

"So you wouldn't help out two tiny kittens willingly?"

Miles shut up. He knew he had lost that round to the... whatever the hell it was.

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><p>Miles stared up at the tall form of Barricade, in all his Decepticon bipedal glory. His mouth had dropped open in shock, and absentmindedly the teen figured that it was on the ground by now. He held Brightspark and Softspark close to his chest, and on the ground beside him lay the bags of cat supplies he had gotten from 'All Your Needs and More, Your Neighborhood Petstore', which was more commonly referred to as The Petstore, even by it's owner.<p>

Carefully, eyes never leaving Barricade, the teen set the two kittens down. He continued to stare at Barricade, taking in slightly scary appearance. The giant metal thing was just so pointy and harsh looking, even though it looked like it had seen better days. The 'con had given his name, and short description of what he was. A non-biological extraterrestrial being, mostly made of metal, but similar to humans. Their sparks were just like a human's heart. If it was taken out they would die.

A soft purring sound snapped his eyes towards the ground, and he saw Softspark rubbing up against the giant metal robot's foot. He looked up at Barricade's face, then back to Softspark, and repeated that a few times. His mind tried to wrap itself around that a cute, tiny, and innocent little kitten was rubbing up against the foot of a giant, terrifying, and not overly-friendly, alien robot. And _purring_.

Then Miles Lancaster began to laugh.


	2. Story telling

**AN: So, the second chapter. Still debating about continuing or not, but I might. Mainly because I want a story with Barricade/Miles in it, and I'm reluctant to do that in my main one.**

**Reviews: **Thanks to _Placid Sky, magiccrazy101, Autobot Firekat, Starz, mizukikage, Noella50881, SailorMoon20114486,_ and _Allycat18_ for reviewing! It's much appreciated! :)

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><p>The sound of a car horn honking reapetedly dragged Miles from sleep, and the young teen yawned, and stretched. For a moment he just stared up at his ceiling with blurry eyes, wishing the car horn would just stop already. When it didn't he groaned, absentmindedly petting Mason's head, the large Mastiff laying comfortably half on and half off the teen. He tried to recall how he had made it home last night, but couldn't. He frowned, something so realistic couldn't have possibly been a dream, especially since he could remember it so well, but the whole thing had been entirely improbable in itself. So maybe he had gotten home the night before and had one of the weirdest dreams of his entire life.<p>

Or maybe he had really met the strange officer with the kittens, but had fallen asleep in the cruiser, and the officer had taken him home. That was entirely plausible.

After a moment Miles sighed, deciding he'd think more on it once he had some breakfast. The teen sat up and grabbed his phone, checking his messages. He had three. The entire time the horn kept honking.

_Dude, what's up? U get lost again? Ur 'rents called me freaking out.  
><em>That one was from Sam. So he had been late returning home, that could only mean the incident with the giant metal alien calling himself Barricade was... He stopped the train of thought before it got too far, and opened the next message.

_Dad and I have left for work. We might be out late, so dinner and lunch are in the fridge. Love you, sweetums!  
><em>That was from his mom, and he grinned.

The next message he hesitated on. The number was in his contacts, but it had no name identifying it, and he couldn't think of who it was. Frowning, he opened it.  
><em>Meet me at the lake in ten minutes. Barricade.<em>

So it had been real. Miles wasn't sure if he was happy about that or not. He checked the time of the message, and gulped, deciding he was definitely not happy about it. The message had been sent at 9:30 am, and it was now 12:30 pm. And the horn was in the background, but this time it made him realize something.

With a sinking feeling in his stomach, Miles suddenly guessed just what car was being honked.

Miles scrambled out of his bed, and over to his window, moving the curtain outside of it, and peering out. Their house was only one story, and his room was located above the garage at the back of their house. This gave him a clear view of the saleen police cruiser sitting outside.

Until that moment Miles had never realized that cars could look angry.

The honking stopped, and the lights flashed a few times. Miles had been seen.

He opened up his window and leaned out of it, "Whatcha want, Barry?"

Barricade revved his engine angrily at Miles, a holoform appearing and stalking towards the back door.

"What? Hey, no! Don't come in! Bad giant alien, I'll be down in ten minutes!" Miles called, jumping over Mason as he ran to the bathroom. He didn't bother checking if Barricade had done as he said or not.

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><p>At exactly thirty seconds after the tenth minute, Barricade appeared in his room, glaring at Miles. The teen, having been shoving his shirt and pants on at the same time, gave a startled yelp and fell backwards as Mason started to bark.<p>

"You look stupid." Barricade stated, regarding the teen sprawled on the floor cooly.

Miles stared up at Barricade in shock, then deciding he was safe enough, glared at the mech. He sat up, and finished putting his shirt on.

"I was asleep, and then I was getting cleaned and dressed. Patience is a virtue, you know." The teen replied, managing to get back up on two feet and put his pants all the way on.

"Another stupid Earth saying."

Miles rolled his eyes, and grabbed his shoes from under the bed, putting them on while hopping around. "To what do I owe this return visit, Barry?"

"It's Barricade." This was snarled at the teen. "And you are easy to retrieve as you already know everything important that there is to know."

"Not telling me anything, _Barry._" So the teen was testing his luck just a little, fighting with the little tiny part of himself that was pointing out how stupid that was.

"While the other members of my race, and myself included, can normally access the internet easily, I am reluctant to. I do not need to draw unwanted attention to myself."

"Someone got it out for you? That sounds surprising." Miles muttered sarcastically. He grinned sheepishly when Barricade glared at him. "So... what? You want a crash course on Earth or something?"

When Barricade just looked at him as if he had suddenly just realized how stupid Miles really was compared to himself, which really might have been true, the teen took a moment to rethink why Barricade might need him.

"Ohhhh, the kittens! Well, I can access the internet for you, but I think they're basically the same as Mason. Only they need less exercise."

"I also require your... assistance in other areas." Barricade said, nearly growling out the word assistance.

Miles tried not to grin at that. Barricade was at least trying to not make it seem like the teen had no choice in the matter, even if he was failing horribly, and even though it was obvious that Miles most likely wouldn't if he tried to walk out on it.

"Like what?"

"System repairs. They are not going as fast as I would like, and I can instruct you on what to do as you do it. Naturally it is just as hard for a Cybertronian to work on themselves as it would be for a human." Barricade paused as he waited for any kind of response. When Miles nodded he continued, "I have a large selection of tools in my alt mode's trunk for you to use."

"You always keep tools on you?" Meant as a joke from Miles, but obviously Barricade had yet to grasp Earth humor completely.

"No, I stole them." And Miles gaped at the holoform in front of him.

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><p>Barricade took Miles to a secluded place, and transformed there after Miles got Brightspark, Softspark, and anything else inside of the Decepticon out. Then Barricade had proceeded to sit down, helping Miles to climb up on him and instructing the teen on what to do, and occasionally encouraging the teen. This only happened sparingly; Miles freaking out when Energon started pouring out of Barricade before he could patch that coolant line up, or when he had to use a few of the tools that he wasn't used to and it caused Barricade to give a small grunt of pain.<p>

Besides that Miles didn't bother with speaking much besides to ask the occasional question as to what a certain part was, and why it was needed. After an hour or two Barricade told the teen he had done enough for the day. Miles had grinned cheekily up at the Decepticon and said that his first time using a welder had been enjoyable. Then he sat down on Barricade's leg, making himself comfortable.

"So, how did you end up here?"

Barricade glared down at the tiny organic on his leg, "A war. Two factions: Decepticon, Autobot. Fighting over the Allspark, which ended up on your world, along with the Decepticon leader, Megatron." He shifted slightly, pointing to the Decepticon symbol he had on. "This is the Decepticon symbol."

"Guessing things didn't go too well for the Decepticons, then?"

"To make a long story short: Your friend, Samual Witwicky was the key to finding the Allsparks location because of the glasses he had obtained from an ancestor."

"Woah, wait, the ones he tried to sell on ebay?"

"Those exact ones. That is how we ended up finding him. However, the Autobot Scout Bumblebee got to Ladiesman217 first, and that was the car your fleshy organic friend had purchased."

"That piece of shit was one of you?" At that Miles gaped up at Barricade.

"The newer one is still Bumblebee. The Autodolt contacted Prime and the rest of their back up. Stuff happened, we fought, I let him win. More stuff. The organic and the merry crew of Autodolts ended up being chased to Mission City."

"So it was a government cover up! I knew it!"

Barricade was torn between exasperation because of the interruptions, and amusement because Miles hadn't seemed to realize that his friend not only knew and hadn't told, but was on the opposite side. "Several of your fellow fleshlings helped the Autodolts. Ladiesman217 personally shoved the Allspark into Megatron's chest, offlining him." A pause, then glare. "Yes, that means killing him. And Megatron is a good deal taller than me."

Miles stayed silent, slipping off Barricade's leg and landing on his two feet already walking. Barricade watched the young teen begin to pace.

_Okay, so, I'm essentially hanging out with my best friend's technical enemy. That's great! But he never even told me, and I've been riding in Bumblebee this whole time! I even spilled soda on him... Oh my God, Bumblebee is going to hate me. But Barricade doesn't seem that bad, even if him and Bumblebee fought. I mean the hard ass took on two adorable kittens... how bad could he be?_

These were a few of the thoughts flowing around in Miles' mind, and the teen turned towards Barricade, opening his mouth, only to be cut off.

"I attacked your friend to obtain the glasses. I did knock him around a little, though no more than a few bruises at the most."

Miles snapped his mouth shut again.

After a moment, "The kittens... you can't be _that _bad, and you said yourself, no more than a few bruises..."

"Make no mistakes about me, fleshling. I have killed before, and have no qualms with doing so again. The kittens were an exception to my 'lone wolf' status. You are just useful."

Barricade didn't bother bringing up Frenzy. Miles huffed and glared up at the Decepticon.

"Y'know, I'm really trying to find a way to convince myself to stick with you, but you're making that hard!"

"I don't want you to stay any longer than for what I need you."

"Well then, that solves my problem." The teen glowered. "You ain't getting rid of me now, Barry."

And the Decepticon had no idea what he was in for.


	3. Making friends pt 1

**AN: So I finally have inspiration to continue this. Mainly because I want to do BxM, and possibly SamxBee, and as of now I might plan to keep TC relatively couple free. So yeah?**

Songs: Tell the truth by Eric Clapton, White Liar by Miranda Lambert, and Sleeping In by the Postal Service.

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><p>Miles relaxed on Barricade's hood, back leant against the warm front windshield, and legs sprawled out. The teen had both Brightspark and Softspark with him, playing with Softspark with a piece of string while Brightspark was content to lay on his chest.<p>

Inside of the saleen police cruiser, occupying most of Barricade's attention, was Miles' laptop. The mech had connected to it, using it as a means to connect to the internet without being able to be detected by another Cybertronian that easily. Watching the teen get a little freaked out when he had first plugged in was just an added bonus.

Miles had effectively lied to his parents, convincing them that Barricade's alt mode belonged to a police officer he had befriended who needed somewhere to put it until he could get enough money to fix it up. Though the mech had been required to change the saying on his side slightly, or get rid of it completely. He had given up when Miles mentioned buying some kitty litter and having the kittens stay in the basement. The 'con still found their bathroom habits completely disgusting, and was much happier when they weren't being done inside of him.

The kittens themselves had taken very little convincing to let his parents let him keep them for the cop, or Officer Barry Ticon as the name that Miles had given them for Barricade's holoform. A nice little story about his elderly mother, who is allergic to cats, getting sick, and Officer Barry having to take care of her, but this using up most of his money. The teen felt bad for lying, but he felt it was for a good cause.

Miles felt more than heard Barricade's engine give a startled rev, and he looked at the 'con questioningly.

"Virus protection, do you even have it?" Was the only response he got, a question to answer a question.

Miles just rolled his eyes. More often than not he only went on a few sites, the same few sites, and never really had to worry about a bad virus from them. Just cookies.

"What were you even on?"

"I was finding information on you fleshlings. Some of your kind has absolutely disgusting kinks."

Miles sat up straight immediately, "Ewww, don't look that up on my laptop! Delete the history and purge the damn thing, you perverted 'con!"

An angry rev of the engine, and Miles rolled his eyes heavenward, as if to ask why he was the one who had to deal with a a tempermental robot.

"_Please_."

* * *

><p>Miles sat next to Sam in Bumblebee, the two teen's going to see a movie. There was comfortable chatting when the radio station suddenly changed.<p>

_"Tell the truth. Tell me who's been fooling you? _  
><em>Tell the truth. Who's been fooling who?"<em>

Sam had freaked, but Miles had caught it, knowing now that Bumblebee was alive, and just like Barricade. So he wanted Sam to tell him? Sam turned the station, laughing about how that song sucked.

_"Hey white liar _  
><em>The truth comes out a little at a time <em>  
><em>And it spreads just like a fire <em>  
><em>Slips off of your tongue like turpentine <em>  
><em>And I don't know why, white liar"<em>

Miles had to bite his lip to keep from laughing as Sam smacked the steering wheel, then the radio, before poking the off button with more force than necessary. He glanced at the Autobot insignia in the middle of the steering wheel, and entertained the thought of talking to Bumblebee while Sam wasn't around. Then he decided against it.

* * *

><p>A few days later and Miles was a bit worried about Barricade, instead. Barricade had gotten a virus from his computer, that much was obvious. But the part that surprised the teen, and ended up worrying him just ever so slightly, was the fact that the mech had yet to get rid of it.<p>

The Decepticon was getting grumpier, and snappier. Miles hadn't even thought that was possible, but it appeared that it was. His voice would get staticky at random points, and he liked to be touched less and less on his interior. Miles could only assume it was more sensitive than his metallic outside, and that might be why.

Miles could understand that Barricade might not be able to get rid of it, even though one would think an advanced robotic being would be able to handle it easily. If something was new to you, it was still new to you, and that's all there was to it. On top of that he knew Barricade's self repair systems were still busy working on the stuff that Miles couldn't help with, or hadn't been allowed to try to help with. They might classify that stuff as more important, and the virus that the mech had gotten as not important enough to be dealt with yet.

After a particularly bad day for the both of them, the Decepticon just mostly silent or in recharge for most of it, Miles had come to a decision.

And as he tripped over the curb in the dark, stumbling and nearly falling into the Witwicky front lawn, he was starting to decide that it just might be a bad one. He cursed softly, trying to hop back to the closest non-grass thing he could walk on without leaving any noticable marks. Ron was anal over his lawn, for some reason the teen could never really understand. Especially after earlier that year when it had been destroyed by some animal, or so he was told.

Finding his feet back on their original course, he let his eyes fall on Bumblebee in his alt mode. No signs that he was alive, none what so ever, but many things now pointed to the opposite of that being true. Barricade revealing himself and Bumblebee, letting every odd little thing of how the car worked make sense, and why Sam always got so mad if Miles did anything to the car.

He moved closer, and put a hand on the hood in a sort of hello pat, glancing around as he did so. He could now notice the gentle thrum of life that Cybertronians tended to give off, and couldn't help but wonder how he hadn't before. Miles set his tone to a whisper, taking a deep breath of air.

"Hey, uh, Bumblebee. You know me, obviously. I'd really like to talk." He tried, and was relieved to see the driver's side door pop open in a silent invitation. He slid inside.

"Sam's asleep, right?" He did not want his friend finding out everything just yet. Telling Bumblebee was only slightly better then telling Sam, and that's because he'd have no remorse if the Autobot decided to hate him.

"_Don't wake me I plan on sleeping _  
><em>Don't wake me I plan on sleeping in.<em>"

Miles stared at the radio, slightly surprised. "Is that the only way you can talk?"

"No," A male's voice came through, and Miles was slightly relieved. "A habit from when my vocalisor was still broken, I still use songs a lot to convey things with Sam and Mikaela."

Then there was a holoform materializing beside him, and he wasn't surprised by the sudden appearance. Instead he looked at the grinning holoform, taking note of how different it was from Barricade's. Slightly shorter than the Decepticon's, with messy blonde hair, bright blue eyes, tanned skin, and what looked like a permanent easy going grin.

Bumblebee held out his hand, and Miles took it, letting the Autobot shake their hands.

"It's nice to meet you, officially, Miles."

"Nice to meet you, too, Bumblebee." A slight pause as the teen thought of something, "And sorry for whenever I did stuff before I knew you were alive."

"It bothered Sam more than me. He was hoping you'd figure it out at some point without him having to say anything." The Autobot shrugged, and Miles was slightly amused. He could already tell that the Autobot Scout used his holoform a lot around Sam, and probably Mikaela too, if he was picking up on human gestures.

"About that, I need your help, but Sam can't know. Well not so much _me_, so you may decide not to..."

The easy going grin was gone, and Miles could almost feel Bumblebee using his advanced robotic-ness to size him up. "Oh? Just how did you learn about me, Miles?"

"I met one of you." Miles hesitated, suddenly wishing he had never gone through with this. "A Decepticon, but it's not like he's turned me evil or anything!"

"The designation?" Bumblebee narrowed his eyes at the teen.

"Wait, can I talk without you cutting in? For just like a minute? That way I can explain all the stuff I think you might want to know. Or find interesting and or extremely amusing."

Miles watched the Autobot's holoform nod.

"Barry," Miles started, then winced. He could just imagine Barricade's reaction if he found out the first thing he told Bumblebee was the nickname he had given the 'con, "_Barricade._ I know who and what he is, and which side he is on." A slight pause as he thought about that, "Was on. Not so sure about that anymore, and I don't think he is either. He kidnapped me. Wait, wait, wait! No, kidnap is kind of the wrong word to use. He did point out that I probably would have gone with him willingly if he had just asked, in that situation. Brightspark and Softspark are just too cute not to want to make sure they survive. They're kittens, by the way, one's Barry adopted after their mother died."

The look of total and utter shock that appeared on the holoform was amusing, but not enough to make Miles pause to laugh about it.

"So here's what happened from what I know of it: Barry doesn't like Starsteam." A pause, "That's not right. Starstream? No matter, they fought, while he was still wounded from you, so Starscream, oh that's it, won, and took his weapons. He went into stasis, and the mama cat got in him and had the babies. Mama cat died, he comes and finds me, pretends to be a cop and asks me to watch over his car, and then chases after the bad guy. I'm not ashamed to admit that I did scream like a little girl, but that only lasted for so long."

"Because of the kittens." It was a statement, not a question.

Miles thought on that, "Actually, I remember thinking that he wouldn't want to kill me because I'd be extremely hard to clean out, I was fairly sure I was going insane at that point, you see. And that he was all bark and no bite, still think that part. So I help him out, and then he comes back, and I help him again. He does mention attacking Sam, but honestly, I've done more damage to Sam physically than he ever did through the course of our friendship. Emotionally, too, I bet. Not to mention at that point he was being annoying and just going on about me being merely useful, so I decided to stick on. So he's staying at my house, as are the kittens, and he connects to the internet with my laptop for information. Next thing I know Barry's apparently looking up porn, gets a virus because of it, and then nearly destorys my computer trying to purge it like I had asked. He does not understand exaggerations well. It hasn't gone away yet. The virus. I think because he's still wounded, and his body has no idea how to react to it on top of that. He hasn't mentioned any secret plans to kill Sam and go after the Autobots, he doesn't even ask me anything about when I hang out with Sam, and you, technically. He doesn't care, he's much more interested in survival. Besides, if you help and he eventually gets turned to the good side, imagine what kind of morale that would have on the others? Especially if they knew someone in the opposite fraction!"

"Kittens." The statement was tinged with disbelief, so Miles brought out his phone and showed him a picture of the kittens on Barricade's alt mode. "Holy frag."

Miles felt Bumblebee's whole entire frame begin to shake, and he was worried. He thought maybe he had broken the Autobot, and the horrifying though of having to explain that and Barricade to Sam filled him. Then, when he heard a slightly strained sound leave the holoform, he realized he was _laughing_.

"I'm sorry, it's just, _Barricade_ and _kittens_? That's just..." And the Autobot burst into laughter once more.

Miles made a face, he was definitely starting to regret this. "Okay, so how about never mentioning this, and just ignoring what I just said?"

Both of them were startled when the light of Sam's room suddenly flicked on.

"No, no, I'll help. I'll contact you, just go."

Miles was shoved out of the Autobot, scrambling up and ducking behind Bumblebee's trunk. He could just barely make out Sam saying something to the Scout, and he waited a moment before slinking away back towards his house.

He wasn't the only one who thought letting Sam in just yet would be a bad idea, with the way Bumblebee encourage him to get out of there.

* * *

><p>Miles stared, and then stared some more. In the back of his head there was a little voice, sounding surprisingly like Barricade, that was taunting him that he was going to get stepped on.<p>

"You said," He hissed at the yellow Autobot standing in front of him, "That you'd be contacting me. Not contacting me with someone else knowing about this!"

"Bumblebee is hardly a medic, human. I am, however, and a medic is always willing to help those in need." Ratchet said, scanning the human as a reflex. "And kittens."

Miles groaned, he was so going to get stepped on.

"Miles, this is Ratchet. He's the CMO, that's Chief Medical Officer, of the entire Autobot army. Best medic we have, and the only one on Earth at the moment. If he can't help Barricade, then the 'con is doomed." Bumblebee tried to sooth the teen.

"It's the middle of the night, and you called me out so I could just meet the medic? No offense Ratch, I bet you're pretty cool, but I can't go sneaking out that often." The teen said, once he finally chose something to say. He'd much rather freak out about how he was rather certain he'd be stepped on, but that wasn't here or there, so he left it.

Ratchet snorted, "I wanted to know the symptoms. Bumblebee did not know, and we both thought it best to get introdctions out of the way."

"Oh." Miles blinked, something finally making sense. "Well, I guess it's a bit like a bad cold. His voice will get a bit staticky, and it looks like he's a bit sensitive on his interior. Not sure of anywhere else, for that. He hasn't really compained, but he has been grouchier. Oh, and he seemed a bit hot earlier when I was sneaking out. Had to tell him Sam had something to talk about real quick."

"What has he been taking in?" The medic asked, both he and Bumblebee sitting on the ground in their bipedal forms.

Well that threw the teen for a loop. "Uhm... gas?", he offered weakly. It was the only thing he could think of.

"Pit, no wonder he's in a bad condition. And he probably still has some wounds. What would be the easiest way to get him here?"

"Just strap a pair of roller skates on me, attach a rope to Bumblebee's trunk, and then have me tell Barry." The teen replied, before grinning. "Judy and Ron are still going for a trip with my 'rents, right, Bee?"

Bumblebee nodded.

"Then I have a plan."


	4. Making friend pt 2

**AN: I didn't want all of this in one chapter, and so I'll just be uploading more than one chapter at once. Reviews being answered for ch.2 here!**

**Reviews: **Thanks to _Autobot Firekat, Noella50881, Kirake,_ and_ DragonCrazed_ for reviewing!  
><em><span>AnimatedCyclone244:<span>_ Miles does definitely not get enough love! Barricade neither, but he does get more than Miles.

* * *

><p>The plan, as it would turn out, wasn't all that wonderful. He faked an illness, having long ago realized that if he acted pathetic enough his mother would believe him, and if his mother was in his father had no choice but to be in as well. Miles didn't use this knowledge often, but the situation called for a no school day, and so there would be no school. It would make everything that much easier.<p>

The difficult part: actually managing to sneak past Barricade while he was sleeping. Miles always left by the back door, or the garage, and as the Decepticon was stationed there, it made this more difficult. The teen managed to solve this by going out the front door, holding the two kitten's firmly in hand.

He met Bumblebee as the Autobot was on his way back from dropping off Sam at school. Miles slipped the kittens inside then texted the 'con.

_Dad stepped on Softspark's tail and both he and Brightie bolted. A morning jogger scared them and well... I'm searching for them, don't get up! _

He then turned his phone off, so that if the 'con responded he wouldn't get it just yet. He then slipped inside, and sat in the passenger seat of Bumblebee.

"Is it odd to drive yourself?" He asked, watching as the holoform did just that.

Bumblebee grinned, "A bit. Before this planet we didn't use holoforms nearly as much. Now I'm kind of used to it."

"I noticed." Miles replied, "You're picking up on a lot of teenage gestures, at least."

"Mm, well I do generally hang with two of them. Does Barricade use a holoform?" The Scout sounded honestly curious, but Miles still hesitated just slightly.

"Sometimes. First time I saw him I thought he was a vampire cop." The teen put on a completely autrocious Russian accent, "I am Barricade, and I 'ave come to suck yor ee-nurh-john!"

Miles grinned when he heard a staticky snort come from the radio instead of the holoform. "You know, when we do tell Sam, I think you and me could have a lot of fun with him."

"You do have much knowledge about him that only a best friend would." Bumblebee smirked, and Miles grinned back. The only question was just when they'd feel like Sam should find out.

* * *

><p>Miles was nervous. Which he thought was perfectly understandable, since he could only see this ending with the same type of reaction. Anger. What happened after that was another matter all together. Most of the time the teen could usually guess at the initial reaction of the Decepticon, which was almost always the same. It was what came after that was usually a wild card.<p>

He already knew the 'con could rarely figure him out if he really had to guess the teen's reaction, the only upper hand he really had. Just interesting enough to entertain and not be squished, and usefull enough to keep coming back.

He was nervous, yes, but not afraid. Which, thinking about it, he decided was probably stupid and wondered where the one little voice had went. But ah well.

Miles could see Barricade driving up. He could also see when the Decepticon came screeching to a halt and just sat there. He had forgotten about the scanners, that was great. He was hoping the 'con would be just a bit closer than that.

"Now, Barry, it's play nice time."

He heard Barricade's engine give an angry rev, and then from somewhere behind him he heard the sound of Bumblebee laughing, and then metal hitting metal, followed by a small whine from the young Scout.

Miles sighed, "You're sick, and still wounded for all I know."

"I'm just exceptional, thank you." The 'con replied dryly, and Miles couldn't tell if that was a good thing or not. He had still been hoping for anger. The 'con transformed into his bipedal form, standing to his full height, and Bumblebee and Ratchet came into view.

"Except for the fact that you're acting worse than a squishie five year old who's just had his hand smacked and been put in the corner." There, that should bring the angry back. He knew how that worked, at the least. "I went to Bumblebee and told him the situation. He apparently told Ratchet. As of now only they know, and Ratchet's being an outstanding medic and is willing to help you."

Barricade somehow morphed his face into a sneer, "When I could hurt your precious CMO, insect?"

"Miles mentioned the fact your weapons are gone. Ratchet's not afraid of a few claw marks, either."

"I don't need my weapons to be a threat."

"You had them and were hardly a threat to me."

"You were protecting LadiesMan217 and the femme. We all know Guardian protocals gives a mech a boost."

"What are you saying?"

"That without anyone to protect I'd be more than a match for you."

Snort. "I got that Decepticon stood for Deception. Didn't know it worked for disillusioned, too."

Well, this kind of anger Miles hadn't really experienced yet. Not to mention hearing two giant alien robots make snide remarks back and forth like two children really wasn't on his list of things he wanted to do. Looking at Ratchet's faceplates, and the hand the medic held the wrench in, he could guess that he and the docbot were on the same wavelength, for now. He decided it was time to step in.

"Barry." He said, first trying to get the con's attention. He was still glaring Bumblebee down, and the Scout was returning that glare. "Barricade!" Bumblebee looked down first, startled, and so Barricade looked down as well.

"I know you don't trust them. I'm not asking you to. Just take the help and don't be a dumb aft about it, it'll do you more good than harm physically, and maybe even get you over a bit of that mental complex you have going on that I'm still trying to work out."

The glare was now on him, excellent.

"Hell, I don't even know if you trust me, but you do _owe_ me. Not even for Brightspark and Softspark, for just helping you, and putting me in a situation that could not only destroy a close friendship, but if Starwhothefuckcares did come back to find you and looked hard enough, I doubt he'd let the annoying-squishie-who-helped live. So, you don't trust them, and you may not trust me, but I'm putting my trust in them because one of us has to do it, and that's just going to have to be enough for you. Right now I'm the only thing you have that could actually help you, because you sure seem uncapable of doing it!"

Barricade leaned down, putting his face closer to the teen. He snarled, "You realize how easy it would be for me to kill you, right?"

"And I'm still saying all of this." Miles responded.

There was a moment of silence as Barricade stood back up and examined each of the Autobots. Bumblebee was tense, ready to spring into action at any moment, but Ratchet just stood there. Barricade turned to Ratchet.

"After me I believe you should scan his head. There's something wrong with his emotional responses to situations."

* * *

><p>Miles was set on Barricade's chestplates, the 'con for some inexplicable reason feeling just the smallest fraction better that way. Something to do with the fact that he figured that if Ratchet decided to do something, it wouldn't be in front of a squishy who was putting their faith into him.<p>

He wasn't stupid by any means. He was a Survivor, and that came even before being a Decepticon. The teen had a point: accept the help, it doesn't mean you trust them. He was already slagged if Starscream had his way, so what was a little more?

He watched the teen, who watched the medic. From the looks of it Miles was thoroughly enjoying all of the rather less then pleasant words being ranted and raved by Ratchet.

"_Aft for a processor, pit-spawned scrap heap, glitch, slagger, fragger, needs a good rewiring-_"

Ratchet had a very extensive vocabulary of insult words. Every new world those would be the first thing he learned, it was a tradition. He was well known for two things, among both the Decepticons and Autobots: his medical prowess, and his extensive insult vocabulary.

But it seemed he had exhausted himself of the second thing for now. "Why, exactly, are you two not telling Samual yet?"

Miles choked on a cough, and Bumblebee sighed.

"Well, I just want Barry to have a better second first impression, I guess. On top of that he kept giant alien robots from me! That's pretty big." Miles explained.

Bumblebee nodded, "It is best not to freak Sam out."

"Have you ever seen him freak out? There's a lot of no's involved." Miles didn't notice Bumblebee suddenly grinning.

"I chased him through town on Judy's bicycle. And I pretended to be stolen."

Miles smirked, "I like you already. I do have one serious question, though. Do you have to tell Optimus Prime about this?"

Both Bumblebee and Ratchet paused at this. Bumblebee had gone to the medic right off the bat, and the medic had been more worried that there was something seriously wrong with the 'con than telling Optimus what was going on. Neither had said anything, and now they weren't sure if they wanted to or not.

"At some point." Ratchet finally replied, ignoring Barricade's grunt of pain as he pulled harder than necessary. "What are you? Decepticon, Decepticon Neutral, Neutral?" He didn't involve Autobot. He wasn't even going to joke about that with the tempermental 'con.

Decepticon was fighting against the Autobots, and hurting the Autobots, Decepticon Neutral was still being on the opposite side, but not harming the Autobots, and Neutral was being on neither side and harming none. The Decepticon Neutral part had to be explained to Miles, though the teen had understood Decepticon and Neutral easily.

"Well, Ratch, even if he does claim Decepticon Neutral, I think it will always just be Decepticon with Bee." The teenager mock whispered.

"True, they both act like envious sparklings around each other."

There was protests from Bumblebee, and a few jerky movements coupled with choice words from Barricade. Ratchet, deciding to be fair, hit them both over the helm with a wrench.

Miles whistled, "That's why you're called the Hatchet!"

* * *

><p>Bumblebee and Ratchet listend as the two went back and forth.<p>

Barricade eyed him, "Do this again and I kill you."

"Oh, please, if you were going to kill me I'd be a squishy pancake already." Miles snorted at the 'con.

"Pressing your luck is stupid."

"So is going to a completely different species instead of sucking up whatever quelms you had about it and going to a 'bot."

Barricade growled, "Then don't worry about me."

"Someone has to babysit you."

Bumblebee snorted, and Ratchet rolled his optics at the Scout. The teen and 'con just continued to fight.


	5. Peace can't last for long

**AN: I love how two different people are like "B and M fight like an old married couple!" Just tossin' that out there.**

**Reviews:  
><strong>_DragonCrazed:_ I think this chapter explains some of that missing upset.  
><em><span>Jacqueline Walker:<span>_ Old married couple, I didn't even think of that! You're the first person to mention it, but not the only one.  
><em><span>AnimatedCyclone244:<span>_ Glad you like Miles so much! I think he's amazing. Thanks for the review!  
><em><span>Dog <span>Soup:_ In my other story, The Change, Miles does actually become like a cat version of Loveless for a bit because of Wheeljack! I thought it was funny that you mentioned that, so I PM'd you to tell you this, buuut idk if you got it or not!  
><em><span>Gina Ichimaru's girl:<span>_ You're the second person to say they fight like an old married couple! This amuses me to no end! I'm glad you enjoy this story so much.

Sidenote: Already have next chapter started. Might have it done by the end of tonight.

* * *

><p>That night, Miles leaned out of his window to talk to the Decepticon. Ratchet had finally finished working on Barricade a couple of hours ago, but the Medic said there was still more to do. Naturally Barricade wasn't too pleased by this, but he didn't say much against it.<p>

"You were a lot better then I thought you would be." Miles commented, "Why?"

"I realized you were right, and I needed to mech up." Barricade drawled sarcastically.

Miles snorted, moving and sitting on his windowsill instead. He took a moment to think of why the 'con might have been more well behaved than would be expected. Because Bumblebee and Ratchet could easily over power him? Probably not. He wanted to get in their good graces to switch sides? Definitely not. If anything Barricade behaving only seemed to annoy Bumblebee more. By the time they were saying goodbye the Autobot Scout was tense and ready to fight a cricket if it so much as hopped wrong. And that thought made it click.

"You were messing with Bumblebee!"

"I did no such thing. Like you said, I was a good little Decepticon."

Miles rolled his eyes, "How can you be so asinine that one of the things you think about is fucking with someo-somemech's mind?"

"Don't give me that." The 'con snorted, "I heard you and the insect talking about messing with LadiesMan217. Why put off letting him know?"

Miles didn't respond to that accusation, mainly because it was true. Instead, he answered the question.

"You could call him Sam, you know, and because if we get Sam to adjust to the idea it will be a lot easier on everyone. Fill him in that I know, and then on the idea that a 'con is getting friendly, and then on who the 'con might be. If nothing else, we fall back to plan b."

"Which is?"

"Showing him you and the kittens. No one can think 'Hey, that's a killer!' if they're holding two adorable kittens. Bumblebee loved them."

There was silence for a moment, and Miles frowned. What was wrong?

"You have pictures?" Uh-oh. Barricade hadn't known about those.

"Uh, no, that was just an example! I meant Bumblebee loved the idea!"

* * *

><p>"What do you think, Ratch?" Bumblebee asked, leaning back on his servos. Both he and Ratchet were at the over look, scanners set to tell them if anyone was coming. Bumblebee had told Sam he would be away for awhile, and hadn't set a time limit for himself.<p>

"I say we wait to let anyone else know. We need to know where he stands first." The CMO responded, currently cleaning whatever tools he had used on the Decepticon they were talking about.

"Yeah, Optimus would probably like to know where he stands concerning us."

The Medic snorted, "I was thinking more along the lines of the organic. Miles. That will be a lot quicker, and if he's with Miles then we already know Miles is with Sam. That would mean that at the least he would be a Decepticon Neutral."

Bumblebee thought about that, and then decided that Ratchet was right. He knew he had been good going to Ratchet with what Miles had told him instead of Optimus. Not only was Ratchet the CMO, but he was one of the oldest mechs on Earth. Only Ironhide was older than him, and there was no way Bumblebee was going to take this problem to the trigger happy Weapons Specialist.

Despite Ratchet's outward actions, Bumblebee knew he cared a lot. All the yelling and cussing was just to try to scare the mech into never doing it again. And Ratchet was normally actually annoyed over the injuries, seeing a lot that could normally be easily avoided.

"Maybe we just need to buy some kittens." The young Scout suggested.

"Even Ironhide couldn't stand up against those. Primus help us all if the twins find out about that weapon!" Ratchet mocked groaned. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe had been heard from not too long ago, and were expected to be arriving soon.

They both laughed.

* * *

><p>Two days later, and Sam had Miles over for a sleep over. They hadn't had one in awhile, and Ron and Judy were gone. Bumblebee was no where in sight either, though Miles didn't know why.<p>

"Dude, where's your car?"

"Cousin wanted to borrow it for a hot date."

Miles took that excuse, only having asked because he assumed that if he hadn't known Bumblebee was alive he would have asked where Sam's car was. Or not. After finding out that Bumblebee was in fact alive, whenever he tried to think of what he would have done believing the mech was a non-sentient car seemed to elude him. It was annoying to the teen.

The two childhood friends did what they would normally do. Watch a few scary movies, mostly Saw, Dawn of the Dead, and other gory ones. Then they started to play video games.

"Kill that bitch, kill that bi-!" Sam was interrupted by a loud bang coming from his front door. Then another, and another.

"Sam, what the he-" And the door finally came down, men in black suits rushing in and towards the teens. They circled them and paused.

"Sector Seven!" Sam shouted, hand just reaching for his phone. Miles had no idea what Sector Seven was, yet.

One of the men sneered, "We were disbanded because of you and those freaks. And then Simmons left us! We are the Ex-agents."

"He was supposed to be alone." One hissed at another, the other guy shrugging. A loud 'Game Over!' rang in the background.

"No matter. Take them both."

The teens never stood a chance.

* * *

><p>"Ow!" Miles hissed, "Sam, get your fucking knee out of my gut!"<p>

"Sorry." Sam whispered apologetically, shifting as much as he could in the small space.

Miles had lasted about a minute, having no fighting experience what so ever, and not to mention he was still confused by what was happening. Sam had lasted five, mainly because he could run extremely fast and had managed to slip off and call Bumblebee.

"A trunk?" Miles kicked his leg out as much as he could, "A _trunk_, really? How cliché can they get?"

Sam tried to peer through the murky darkness to see his friend, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't see any details. There'd be no telling Miles' facial expressions in this light.

"I'm so sorry, Miles. This is abo-" Miles cut him off with a firm nudge.

"I know."

Sam's mouth froze in shock, before he sputtered. "W-what?"

"I know. About the Cybertronians, not whatever the hell Sector Seven is."

"Yo-How long have you known?"

Miles did the math. "Almost three whole weeks."

God, but it seemed so much longer than just that. Starting from the first day where Barricade had tricked him into his alt mode, to this day now, he had only been out of the Decepticon's presence for half a day. And most of that was because he had slept in.

He had known the 'con for two weeks, and on the first day of what would start as the third he had gotten the virus, and Miles had gone to talk to Bumblebee. On the third day of the third week Bumblebee had met him with Ratchet. The fourth day they had gotten Barricade involved. And two days later was the sleepover. This was the sixth day.

Despite the short amount of time it had actually been, it felt a lot longer to the teen.

"How did you find out?"

"I met one of them." He replied, not having the heart to tell his best friend that it had been Barricade given their current situation.

"I just-I..." Sam trailed off, before taking a deep breath, and kicking Miles in the shin hard.

"Ow!"

"Does Bee know?"

"He's known for a few days. Though I knew about him before he knew about me."

Sam groaned loudly, "Great. Why didn't you te-"

"Talk about it later! Who the hell is Sector Seven?" Miles demanded.

And Sam told him about how Sector Seven was a section of the government created to hide the fact that Megatron was on the planet, and the presence of the Allspark cube, even though they hadn't known what that was. He went on to say how they had broken into his house, taken Mikaela, his parents, and him into custody, only to have the Autobots rescue them. Then Sector Seven retaliating, and ending up taking Bumblebee. How he and Mikaela were taken, and in the end how they ended up getting Bumblebee out. He included a bit more of the story, but didn't mention anything before Sector Seven found them.

* * *

><p>They had been pulled over somewhere, and Sam had been taken out of the trunk. Miles was locked inside, ignored as he kicked and screamed as much as he could.<p>

The Ex-agents had started some of their tests early, though there wasn't much they could do until they got to their actual lab. They weighed, measured, poked and prodded, took some blood, some saliva samples, and a few other things. Sam didn't have much choice in the matter, but he did kick up a fuss.

The Ex-agents consisted of those who had been working in Sector Seven for most of their lives. Only Simmons wasn't a member of them, which didn't concern them much. Their goal: prove that the Autobots were a threat to human kind so the aliens would get kicked off the earth and they would be extoled as heros.

After their testing was done they sedated the teen. It wouldn't do to have head aches from two of them hollering on in the trunk, and this way the other would be too busy being scared or worrying to kick up a fuss.

They were smart men. They had taken the teenager's phones and destoryed them, and then had spent an hour driving around in random circles in case anyone was following them. No one had appeared to be yet.

There were three seperate vehicles. Two cars with a large van in between them. The van was meant to make anyone looking for them assume that's where the teens were, though in reality they were shoved in the trunk of the small car in back.

* * *

><p>Miles was freaking out. Nothing he did could wake Sam up, and he wasn't even sure what the Ex-agents had done to his long time friend. They ignored his yelling, his banging, and anything else he did.<p>

The only reason he even knew Sam was alive was because he could hear the teen breathing if he stopped doing everything. He couldn't see in the darkness Sam's chest rising and falling, and his hands were tied behind his back so he couldn't check for a pulse. But he could hear his friend, and if he moved close enough he could feel the air, too.

On top of that he had no idea when they'd be stopping again. Would they give them food and water? Bathroom breaks and fresh clothing?

All the teen had to do was stew in his own thoughts, which just made his positive thinking circle the drain slowly but surely.

* * *

><p>Miles jerked awake when he heard one of the Ex-agents cuss loudly.<p>

"Shit! Stue, get to that warehouse. Steve's been pulled over, and Shaun is staying with him."

"But-"

"Go!"

Miles nudged Sam, and then whispered, but got no reaction from the boy. He could feel the car turn ever so slightly, slow, and then pull to a stop.

The trunk opened, and Miles was blinded by the flashlights the two Ex-agents were using. He was dragged out of the car, and shoved towards a matress warehouse. The Ex-agent stuck a gun to his head, and he wisely kept his mouth shut as he watched Sam be carried out of the trunk by the other guy.

There were two in the car with the teens. He knew there was at least four in the van from listening in, and then more in the other car.

A minute later and he was shoved down on to a bed, Sam placed a few beds away from him.

"Stue, go check the perimeter!" One Ex-agent ordered, and Stue listened. Miles tried to remember if he had heard this one's name, but was drawing a blank.

He stared at the nameless Ex-agent, and the Ex-agent stared back.

"I have to go to the bathroom."

"No."

"I _really_ have to go to the bathroom!"

"No."

"I _really really_ have to go to the bathroom."

"No!"

Miles kept at it for a few minutes, determined to at least annoy the Ex-agent if nothing else. By the time Stue came back the nameless Ex-agent was angrier than a bull during a rodeo. No name barely glanced at Stue, glaring at the teen and gritting his teeth.

"Stue, take the fucking brat to the bathroom!"

No name hadn't been looking at Stue, but Miles had. And he saw the flash of red eyes instead of blue, and the smirk. The teen gaped, not believing what he had just saw. It was almost too good to be true by this point.

"No."

No name froze for just a moment, before turning to what he thought was Stue, smoke practically pouring out of his ears. "What did you say?"

"No." And just like that the image of Stue melted away, a much more familiar one taking it's place. One Miles had come to know as Barricade's human version.


	6. Bringing it in

**AN: Woohoo, this is done. Night!**

* * *

><p>Miles looked down at the no name Ex-agent, and was happy he hadn't eaten anything for awhile. The man was practically unrecognizable, and Miles almost thought he was dead, except for the occasional raspy breath he would drag in.<p>

"Did you have to be that enthusiastic about it?" Miles asked, shifting a bit as Barricade untied him. The 'con had dissolved the holoform by this point, having forced down the wall and brought in his bipedal form. He was using his claws to just cut through the rope.

"Are you really complaining?"

Miles thought about that. He thought of what the 'con had done to nameless, what he had probably done to Stue, what he had probably done to Shaun and Steven, and what he had probably done to any of the others. Then he thought about what might have happened to Sam, to any Cybertronian on Earth, and to himself. He finally decided that no, he wasn't going to complain.

"No, but was it really necessary to break the wall down with your big form?"

"Bipedal mode, and I had to get it in here somehow. There's no door big enough for me."

Miles thought about groaning, but decided he should just stick to rolling his eyes. He heard Sam groan off to his side, and perked up. The teen was finally awake, after all of that ruckus.

"Sam, you're awake, finally!"

"Mil-" Sam cut himself off, and Miles turned to look at his friend to see why. Sam was staring up and way from him, eyes wide in horror.

"Hello, LadiesMan217." Barricade rumbled, leaning his bipedal form closer, and holding up a claw.

Sam screamed.

* * *

><p>Sam was beyond confused. The last thing he remembered was being taken by the Ex-agents and shoved in the back of a trunk with Miles. He didn't remember being tested on, and wasn't awake when they had been brought into the matress warehouse.<p>

Now the Ex-agents were gone, and Barricade was there instead. _Barricade._ The Decepticon had practically tried to kill him, or that's what Sam had taken it as. And here the 'con was getting in a row with his best friend, Miles.

From what he could understand of it, Barricade had been the one to save them. Where was Bumblebee, Optimus, Ironhide, or even Ratchet? How did Barricade even know they had been taken, and why had the Decepticon even come for them?

He did guess at a few things. That Miles had known Barricade for awhile with the way his friend was acting, and that somehow Barricade tolerated the teen. He could only assume that maybe, if Bee hadn't know that Miles had known about them for awhile, that Barricade was the one Miles had met and learned everything from. How, why, where, and when?

Sam knew practically nothing. The only thing he knew for sure was the kink in his neck that was starting to develop it from swiveling it so fast. Miles was on his right, and he would swivel his head right when his friend spoke. Barricade was on his left, and he would swivel his head in that direction when the 'con spoke.

Swivel left. "I didn't ask for you to involve the insect and their precious little medic."

Swivel right. "You involved me. I just furthered that involvement. You never told me I couldn't.

Swivel left. "Yeah, and now the insect is involving _me_. Soon as he realizes he's failed at his Guardianship he contacts me for help. And who finds you? I do."

Swivel right. A groan. "God, we both know that you actually like the fact that you found us first, because now you can brag and rub it in his face like an aft."

Swivel left. Irritated growl is heard. "That is besides the point, fleshling. Last time I checked, I shouldn't be performing heroic acts for pathetic organics whenever an Autobot calls."

Swivel right. Extreme deadpan. "It's not very heroic if you go on like this, Barry."

* * *

><p>Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Bumblebee, and Ratchet had just entered the mattress warehouse. They saw Miles and Sam. Sam sitting on one of the mattresses and looking completely lost, and Miles standing with an exasperated expression on his face as he stared up at the only Decepticon in the entire building. Barricade was staring right back at the tiny organic. Ratchet was quick to react, pulling out a wrench and tossing it at Ironhide's helm just before the Weapons Specialist could fire.<p>

Ironhide growled, but stopped. Optimus looked mildly surprised, and Bumblebee just shook his head, going and picking up Sam from the bed. The Autobot Scout scanned his Charge, while Ironhide and Optimus both watched him like hawks. Barricade didn't even react.

"Let's just see where he stands." Ratchet said in Cybertronian, looking directly at Optimus. The Prime hesitated for a moment, before nodding. Ironhide appeared absolutely gobsmacked by this.

"See that, Barry?" Miles asked, "None of them are going to stop you. Not the big black one with the cannons, or the one I think is Prime. Not Bumblebee or Ratchet. If you hate where this could go so much, then leave. We both know you have a way better chance of surviving this way, but if you hate it then go. It's as simple as that."

There was only silence for a moment, and Ratchet picked his way over to examine the Ex-agent and make stock of the injuries. Bumblebee was occupied with Sam, pulling water out of a compartment and giving it to the teen. Both of the Autobots ignored their Prime and Weapons Specialist, both of whom who were watching Barricade and Miles. They also ignored the Decepticon and the teen.

"You should go and get checked by the Medic, fleshling."

Was the only thing Barricade said, and Miles grinned. The mech wasn't leaving, or fighting the teen on it. He didn't respond, but to Miles that just meant he was being stubborn. The teen had _won_.

Miles turned to look up at Optimus and Ironhide, "Hi, I'm Miles."

Ironhide looked between the organic and Barricade, then Barricade and Bumblebee, and then Barricade and Ratchet.

"What's going on here?" He growled.

Bumblebee sent him a data burst of information, and sent the same to Optimus. Ironhide's engine gave a starteld rumble, and for once it was obvious what expression Optimus was wearing even behind his battle mask. Ratchet smirked, already having seen what the Prime and Weapons Specialist were seeing.

"Kittens?" They both asked in disbelief.

Miles froze in mid-walk, having been walking over to Bumblebee and Sam. Somehow, _somehow_, he had actually managed to convince the 'con that there were none.

Barricade snarled, "You said there weren't any pictures!"

"Oops?"

* * *

><p>"Why the hell didn't you tell me that Barricade kidnapped you?" Sam asked, tossing his shoe at Miles. Sam sat on Ratchet's leg, the medic thoroughly scanning him. Bumblebee sat beside them, and Miles was on the floor in between Bumblebee and Barricade. Opposite them was Ironhide and Optimus.<p>

Miles rubbed his arm, "Well, he mentioned that he had scared you, and banged you up a little. On top of that he was on the opposite side of what you went with, so I dunno."

"I still don't get why'd you trust him if he told you exactly what he did to Sam." Ironhide stated, glaring at the 'con. He wasn't going to trust him that easily.

"I've caused Sam way more mental trauma then Barry ever could. More physical damage, too."

"What mental trauma?" Bumblebee questioned, peering between the two teens.

Sam shivered. "Clowns."

"Last time I had any say about what happened at one of his birthday parties, too." Miles sighed, trying to stifle a grin.

"That's why he refused to go to the circus with Mikaela." Bumblebee said, Miles and Sam nodding.

"I still hate you for that, Miles."

"I didn't know he'd set your hair on fire and then laugh!"

Ratchet snorted, and Bumblebee looked thoroughly amused. Ironhide had given up understanding anything that was really going on. He had been in fight mode, not think mode.

"Well, Miles, it is an honor to meet you. You have already met Ratchet, my Chief Medical Officer, a senior officer, and trusted friend. Bumblebee, our youngest, and one of our best scouts. He's also Samual's guardian. This is Ironhide, our Weapons Specialist, another senior officer, and my body guard. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, twins and two of our finest front liners, are back on base, along with Jazz, my TIC. Jazz is currently in what you humans would call a coma, however."

"So that's why you had to go? The others were coming in?" Sam looked up at Bumblebee, and the mech nodded.

"More of you? That's cool." Miles grinned, leaning against Barricade's leg.

"You will be getting to meet them soon. As well as Captain William Lennox and Sergeant Robert Epps." Optimus responded, and both Miles and Sam looked at him.

"What?"

* * *

><p>Miles was involved now, and therefore the government had to know. So Sam had taken Bumblebee, and Miles had taken Barricade, Optimus leading the way back to the area they used as base. It was also so Ratchet could get Barricade on base, and drag the 'con off to deal with his oh so tender touches. They did stop at Miles house just to grab Brightspark and Softspark, and leave a note telling his parents that they should talk to Sam's parents.<p>

Besides getting Miles situated, there was also the matter of the Ex-agents and informing the government of them, and getting them taken care of. Barricade had done a number on all of them, but hadn't killed a single one. The 'con had muttered something about not wanting to listen to the complaints if he had, though it was more likely that he didn't want their organic liquids everywhere.

Getting this done had taken awhile, and had to be done before they could leave the mattress warehouse. Sam had never been so happy that they were walking wi-fi connections, and the fact that Bumblebee and Ironhide kept food and drinks stashed away in small compartments for their humans.

NEST base was still in Nevada, but a couple hours away from Tranquillity in a more secluded spot. The base was still in the process of being made into a base, mainly just large hangars sitting there and called different things at the moment. There weren't that many organic members of NEST on base yet, and most of the humans on base consisted of construction workers, or were only stationed there for a bit.

People like Will, Epps, and Fig, who the 'bots could regularly talk to, were a treat. Ironhide had already claimed Guardianship over Will, and his whole family through him. Sarah Lennox, the Captain's wife, and Annabelle Lennox, their daughter.

Not long after arriving on base Barricade had been dragged off, Optimus had gone to get the official work concerning Miles out of the way, and Sam had been put to bed. Miles was taken hostage by Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, Will and Epps not even getting a chance to meet the teen yet. The two soldiers had just been sent on their way instead.

Barricade glared out the open hangar door as Ratchet worked on something in his back. From here he could see Sunstreaker, Ironhide, Sideswipe, and Bumblebee gathered around Miles and the two kittens. The teen was sitting in Sideswipe's hand, gesturing wildly and talking away happily. Ironhide had Softspark, and Bumblebee had Brightspark. Sunstreaker was staring down at the teen, standing close to his brother. The vain mech was still iffy about all the organic substances on Earth, having only been on the planet not even a full day.

A rough tug on some wiring caused him to hiss in pain, but he also got the hint. Ratchet was asking without asking, and in this situation it would be better to answer the medic. Ratchet had apparently taken it upon himself to be a busybody, most likely because he was normally around mechs like Optimus Prime, Prowl, and Ironhide, and that didn't just stop at the Autobots now Barricade had claimed Decepticon Neutrality. Still supporting the Decepticon side, but not going to harm any Autobots.

"I had them first." He grumbled obligingly.

Ratchet took a moment to respond, busy with some part of the 'con. "Now who is that really defining? The kittens or Miles?"

Even if Barricade could have answered that, he wouldn't have.


End file.
